Helmsley
Class 5 had a fantastic residential last week. We stayed in Helmsley Youth Hostel which was perfect for our needs. As we were the only people there, it was a good base to head out from for our activities. The accomodation was lovely and clean and the food was amazing. A buffet breakfast to set us up for the day, a choice of sandwich for our packed lunch and a hearty tea with delicious puddings. The showers were needed after a hard work of learning and the beds welcoming for a good night's sleep - eventually anyway!!!!!!
Wednesday
Helmsley castle
Helmsley Castle was amazing. Walking around the grounds you could see how huge it had been. The two storey Tudor mansion showed us the elaborate decoration they used and the pure size of the house. The gate house illustrated how people would arrive at the castle and the defence structures they had in place.
The Bird of Prey Centre
We were very privileged to be in the Bird of Prey Centre on our own, as they opened up especially for us on Wednesday evening. The walk up on a warm evening added to the visit as we could see the beautiful grounds it was set in - although the sheep and cows were a challenge for some.
We were treated to four birds being flown, including a tawny owl and fish eating eagle. They all had their own personalities as they flew around, and one even decided that he had had enough and flew to a far away tree. He dd come home for his tea eventually.
The children were then given an activity card to find out what foods the different birds ate. The birds were entertaining and enjoyable to see.
Thursday
On Thursday we set off on our long walk to Rievaulx Abbey. The sun was shining and, although it was challenging in places (the dreaded steps) we had a fantastic sense of satisfaction when we arrived at the Abbey, even though the walk back was in the back of our heads. The Abbey was impressive, the pure size of it was unbelievable and seeing the decoration in the museum showed the wealth that had been there. We learned about the Henry VIII ordering the Abbey to be dismantled and the glass and lead to be removed and sold and so it became empty. The stone was taken by the villages to build the houses of the village and the Abbey fell into disrepair. We saw how bad the Abbey looked when the English Heritage took over and how beautiful it is today.
Amazingly, the walk home did not seem half as far.
Later that evening we went into Helmsley Village to carry out a field study. Unfortunately, it had started to rain but it did not stop us noticing the beauty of the village. We noted down the use of the buildings and compared them to what is in Batley. You certainly won't go thirsty or hungry with lots of lovely tea rooms to visit.
Friday
On Friday we set off on the coach to visit our friends at Pickhill School. When we arrived we introduced ourselves and some children got to know their penfriends. We were invited into their assembly where we saw the pupils get weekly rewards. They also taught us their favourite song. As it was Fathers' Day that Sunday, dads had been invited to join their children for the assembly and for a Fathers' Day lunch. We ate our packed lunch at the school and then walked over to the church. Like our church, this is called All Saints Church and we noted the similarities between the two.
We then boarded the bus home. It was a shame to be heading home after such an enjoyable visit but I think we all needed to catch up on some sleep.
Thank you Class 5 for being so well behaved and making the visit brilliant,
